Inson



(No Model.)

0. J. ROBINSON 85 T. BIRKS. APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING MOISTURE FROMGRAIN.

No. 584,195. Patented June 8,18Q7.

UNITED STATES PATENT Fries,

CHARLES JOHN ROBINSON AND THOMAS BIRKS, OF ROCHDALE, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING MOISTURE FROM GRAIN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 584,195, dated June 8,1897.

Application filed February 25, 1896. Serial No. 530,738. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES JOHN ROB- INSON and THOMAS BIRKS, subjectsof the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Rochdale, in the county ofLancaster, England, have invented a new and useful Improvement inApparatus for Separating Moisture from Grain, of which the following isa specification.

The main object is to provide simple and efficient apparatus forremoving adhering or surface moisture from washed, damped, or

wetted grain without subjecting the said grain to undue friction orrubbing oif the outer skin or cuticle.

Figure 1 is an elevation, parts being removed, and Fig. 2 is ahorizontal section at the line A B, of apparatus constructed inaccordance with our invention.

(4 is the framework, which carries a sheetmetal or other suitable caseI), closed at the top and terminating at its lower end in a basin ortrough c. WVithin the case b and basin or trough c is a conicalcontainer of woven wire, perforated metal, or like open-work mat-erialcl, the wider end of the said container being above.

e is a way passing through the case 1) into the lower end of thecontainer cl.

f is a way leading from the top of the container (1 down through thecase Z2. Within the container cl is ashaft g, free to rotate in bearingsh h in the frame a. The said shaft 9 is fitted with a conicalstar-shaped drum or device 1', having advancing faces 3' and retiringfaces k. The advancing faces j each carry a series of semicircularblades Z. Each blade is set at an angle, so as to rise from front torear of the face, and the top edge of a lower blade is at about the samelevel as the bottom edge of the blade above. The drum or device irotates in the direction of the arrow. The interior face of thecontainer cl should be smooth, so as not to abrade the grain.

The moist grain is fed into the apparatus through the way c, where it isstruck by the advancing faces j and thrown against the in nor surface ofthe perforated container cl, from which it rebounds into the spacesformed by the retiring faces is, which gather it together, so as to becaught by the inclined blades Z, which raise the said grain to theadvancing faces j. The faces j again fling the grain against the innersurface of the container d and the operation is repeated until the grainreaches the top and is thrown out through the way f. Each time the graincomes in contact with the inner surface of the container at some of theadhering moisture flies through the perforations and falls or tricklesdown into the basin or trough c, whence it is run off through a suitableopening on. In this way the grain is practically freed from adheringmoisture when it doscends the way f. Owing to the perforated container dbeing of larger diameter above, the water passing through theperforations cannot again enter the chamber. The blades being within therentrant angles lift the grain Within the angles, while the anglesthemselves throw the grain outwardly against the case. The reentrantangles also collect the grain upon and feed it to the liftingblades.

To claim In grain-drying apparatus,the combination with adownwardly-tapering perforated container having a feed-inlet at itslower end, of a vertical downwardly-tapering polygonal drum having asolid or continuous surface composed of sides forming reentrant angles,and inclined lifting-blades projecting from one face of each of thesereentrant angles; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands this 11th day ofFebruary, 1896.

CHARLES JOHN ROBINSON. THOMAS BIRKS. Witnesses THOS. Wnrrwonrn, W. T.RAwnoNE.

